October 15, 2010

Apple announced that Verizon will begin selling the iPad later this month, in the latest sign that the exclusive relationship between Apple and AT&T may be coming to an end. The iPad will come to Verizon stores on October 28th.

As production of the iPad has caught up with demand, Apple has made it available to more retailers including Best Buy, Target, Wal-Mart and Sam's Club. However, making it available to AT&T's rival Verizon, is surprising given the history between Apple and AT&T. AT&T has been the exclusive network provider for both the iPad and iPhone since the devices respective releases.

The announcement will certainly increase speculation that Apple will soon release an iPhone for Verizon's network, speculation which has been gaining momentum of late. This week the New York Times reported that a Verizon iPhone could be available early next year, joining Bloomberg News and The Wall Street Journal, which also reported this week that Apple was in talks to develop a CDMA iPhone in India.

At least for now, Verizon stores will sell Wi-Fi only models of the iPad, although it can be bundled with a portable hotspot to provide a mobile high-speed connection.